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MISSIONARY SERIES 



VOL. XIII. 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 




ludlaiis <l:'si»layiiij'; tlitir IropJiics «>f Yictoiy, 



HISTORY ^^^ 

or THE >JU^ >**^. y^ 

AMERICAN MISSION 

TO THE ^ 

PAWJVEE IJVDIAJVS. /l^ 



BY THE AUTHOR OF 

ConversiUions on the Itulian ^llissiotts. 



Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every crea- 
ture. He that helicveth and is baptized, shall be saved ; but he 
that believeth not shall be damned.— Jesus Christ. 



Written for the Massachusetts Sabbath School Society, and 
revised by the Committee of Publication. 



BOSTON : 

MASSACHUSETTS SABBATH SCHOOL SOCIETY, 
Depository, No. 13 Coruhill. 

1838. 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1838, 

By CHRISTOPHER C. DEAN, 

En the Clerk's Office ofthe District Court of Massachusetts. 



3X^/ r^ 



M I S S I OJV 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Introduction — North American Indians within the limits 
of the States — Indians beyond the Western Frontiers — 
Emigrant Indians — Estimated number of Indians east 
and west of the Mississippi — The Pawnees — Four 
1 bands — Appointment and exploring tour of the first 

Missionaries to the Pawnees — Grand Pawnee village — 
Lodges — Dress, furniture, &c., 

^ After Hugh Clifford had related to his 

cousins, the Misses Barton, and their brother 

Robert, all he knew about the Mission to the 

'^ Indians near and beyond the Rocky moun- 

, tains, they, one afternoon, urged him to tell 

2 



10 MISSION TO THE 

them, what efforts had been made to introduce 
the gospel among the Pawnee Indians. 

"I will give you all the information I pos- 
sess," replied Mr. Clifford ; " but, before I 
commence, allow me to repeat the remarks 
made by the Prudential Committee in their 
last report. * The Indian tribes of North 
America may be arranged geographically, in 
two classes ; those within the limits of the 
States and Territories of the Union, and those 
beyond the western frontiers. The number 
of the former, at the present time, may be 
estimated at seventy-five thousand.^ 

" The tribes beyond the limits of our States 
and Territories, may also be divided into two 
classes ; the one embracing the tribes which 
liave emigrated from the East, and the other, 
those who now occupy their original country.*' 

Ann. Are not the Choctaws and Chero- 
kecs a part of the emigrant Indians ? 

Clifford. Yes ; the emigrant tribes are 
generally agriculturists and settled in their 
njode of living, and most of them are [)artially 
civilized ; while those who now occupy their 
original country obtain subsistence mainly by 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 11 

hunting, are migratory in their habits, and 
savage in their character. The emifrrant tribes, 
when they shall be joined by their brethren, 
now east of the Mississippi river, will probably 
embrace about one hundred and eight thou- 
sand souls, while the native tribes between our 
western frontiers and the Rocky mountains, 
including about ten thousand Ojibwas on the 
north, are estimated to embrace one hundred 
and twenty-two thousand. Of the number of 
those who occupy the Territory, including the 
mountains and regions beyond to the Pacific 
ocean, no correct estimate can be formed. 

The western Indians have been approached 
at the southern and northern extremities of 
their Territory. In the south, beginning with 
the emigrant Cherokees, Choctaws and Creeks, 
the line of missions of the American Board 
extends to the Pawnee country, and thence, 
by means of the exploring tour, performed 
within the last eit^hteen months, and the new 
station recently taken among the Flat Head 
and Nez Perces tribes, to the Oregon river. 

On the north, the line of missions begins 
with Mackinaw and the Stockbridge Indians, 



12 MISSION TO THE 

and proceeds on from the southwestern shores 
of Lake Superior, through the Ojibwa country, 
to the head waters of the Mississippi, and 
thence into the country of the Sioux, whose 
bands extend westerly to the head waters of 
the Missouri. Here we meet with numerous 
extensive tribes, through which the hne should 
be extended, till it intersect the first mentioned 
line beyond the Rocky mountains. 

No portion of the heathen will require so 
many laborers or so great expenditures, in pro- 
portion to the number of souls to be benefited, 
as the migratory tribes of the North American 
Indians. No class of the heathen require 
more to be done for them, while none are with 
greater difficulty brought under a permanent 
Christian influence. Nearly the whole of this 
race must, undoubtedly, receive the gospel 
from the hands of Christians in the United 
States, if they are ever to partake of its blessings. 

Helen. How many missionaries do you 
suppose would be required to instruct them? 

Clifford. That portion of them which 
might properly be allotted to the American 
Board of Missions would probably require 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 13 

sixty ordained missionaries, including those 
now laborino; amon"; them, and one hundred 
and twenty intelligent men as catechists, teach- 
ers of schools, &ic., who should be qualified to 
give religious instruction among the small 
bands with which they should have their 
residence. 

Jane. How many bands of the Pawnees 
are there ? 

Clifford. They are divided into four bands, 
- — Pawnee Republicans, Pawnee Picts, Pavi^- 
nee Laups, and Grand Pawnees, — amounting 
in all, according to estimates made by agents 
and traders, to about twelve thousand persons. 

Perhaps you already know that the Rev. 
Mr. Dunbar and Mr. Allis, received an ap- 
pointment from the Prudential Committee, 
early in the year 1834, and left Ithica, in the 
State of New York, on the fifth of May, of 
the same year, on an exploring tour among 
the Indians west of the State of Missouri. 

Mrs. Barton. Yes, and if I mistake not, 
they had a conditional commission, or their 
instructions were conditional. 

Clifford. Yes ; they were left at liberty 
2* 



14 MISSION TO THE 

to commence a mission among the Pawnees 
on Platte river, if they failed to secure facilities 
for exploring the Indian country beyond. 
They proceeded up the Missouri river as far 
as Cantonment Leavenworth, about three 
hundred mid fifty miles, by land, from St. 
Louis. They remained in that vicinity from 
June till September, visiting the various bands 
of Indians located in that quarter, collecting 
information, and making other preparations for 
their future labors. Finding that it was inex- 
pedient to attempt to penetrate to the tribes 
farther removed in the interior, they left Can- 
tonment Leavenworth, on the 22d of Sep- 
tember, and proceeded to Council Bluffs (the 
scat of an agency for the Pawnees, and a 
number of other Indian tribes in that quarter), 
where they arrived on the 2d of October. In 
about two weeks, the Pawnees came to the 
agency, to receive their yCcirly annuity. They 
soon learned that two white men had come, 
who wished to live with them, and the princi- 
pal chief of the Pawnee Laups petitioned the 
agent, Major Dougherty, for one of them to 
go v^ith him, and live in his village. The 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 15 

Major was ready to favor all judicious meas- 
ures for the improvement of the Indians under 
his care, and he thought it best to have the 
Indians receive their annuities before the busi- 
ness of the mission was much agitated. When 
the agent had declared to them the plans and 
purposes of the missionaries, the chiefs who 
were present said they were glad to see them, 
for they had been inquiring about the things 
of relio;ion, but their minds were dark and 
they were in doubt with respect to these things, 
and would be glad to hear any information 
concerning them, that the missionaries thought 
proper to impart. 

Mrs. Barton. Persons ignorant of Indian 
character will attach much more meaning to 
all this fine talk, than those will who have had 
a longer acquaintance with their character. 

Clifford. After some deliberation and much 
prayer, Mr. Allis engaged to go with the chief of 
the Pawnee Laups, and Mr. Dunbar with the 
chief of the Grand Pawnees, to their respec- 
tive villages. They separated, and started on 
their winter's tour the 19th of October. Mr. 
Dunbar had been invited to go and live in the 



16 MISSION TO THE 

lodge of the chief. Not one of the party to 
whom Mr. Dunbar was attached could speak 
a word of EngHsh. The conversation, so far 
as they had any, was carried on by signs. 
During the first day they crossed four streams, 
one of them extremely miry and difficult. 
The river Platte and the Big Horn had good 
fording-places, where the water was not more 
than two feet deep. The first night they en- 
camped on the shore of the Platte, a little 
above the ford, and soon after night-fall. Mr. 
Dunbar had not tasted any food after leaving 
the agency at ten o'clock, and still he had to 
wait for the corn to be boiled before he could 
get any supper. When set before him, he ate 
heartily of the dried buffalo meat, as well as 
of the boiled corn. When he had finished the 
repast, a skin was spread on the ground, and, 
wrapping himself in his blanket, he lay down 
in the open air near the left hand of the chief. 
The rest of the party slept round the fire, 
wrapped in their buffalo robes, according to 
their rank and age. Mr. Dunbar says, " After 
commending myself, my friends, my compan- 
ions, and a dying world, to the great God, 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 17 

whose presence is every where, I slept 
soundly." 

After traveling three days, they reached the 
Grand Pawnee village, and were met by the 
wives, children and relatives of some men who 
had perished the preceding night on a prairie 
which by some means had taken fire. One 
man lost in this fire eighteen horses. Intelli- 
gence of this melancholy affair had reached the 
village a little before Mr. Dunbar's arrival. 
It was a sad spectacle to see the men, that 
were not already dead of their burns, dragged 
to the village on horses ; and the crying, howl- 
ing and lamenting of the mourners added to 
the horrors of the scene. 

The chief led the way to his lodge, and 
his daughter immediately appeared, unsaddled 
his horse, brought in his baggage, and then at- 
tempted to take off the saddle from Mr. Dun- 
bar's horse ; but she met with some diffi- 
culty, and he kindly took it off himself. When 
he entered the lodge, he found the bear-skin 
already spread for his reception, and a seat 
laid thereon made of cloth, larger than a pillow 
and stuffed with deer's hair. As soon as he 



18 MISSION TO THE 

had got well settled in his place, a bowl of 
dried buffalo meat was brought to him ; and 
when he set that aside a large wooden bowl of 
boiled corn and beans was served, and this 
was followed by a bowl of parched corn, which 
had been pounded in a mortar, a bowl of 
mush, and an ear of roasted corn. 

Robert. A real feast, I suppose, among 
the Indians. 

Clifford. Yes ; and the next day he was 
invited to eat at six different lodges before 
noon, and during the five days he stopped at 
the village, he said he was " literally stuffed 
with their food and kindness." 

Jane. How far was the village from the 
agency ? 

Clifford. About one hundred and twenty 
miles. It stands on a rising ground, not more 
than thirty rods from the edge of the river 
Platte. It is very compactly built, but with- 
out the least regularity or regard to conven- 
ience. 

Robert. How many inhabitants does it 
contain ? 

Clifford. Probably as many as two thou- 
sand. 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 19 

Jane. How are the lodges built? 

Clifford. I will describe them as well as I 
am able. From six to ten posts, according to 
the size of the building, twelve or fourteen feet 
long and forked at the top, are set up in a cir- 
cle, and firmly fixed in the ground. Eight or 
ten feet from these is set up another and larg- 
er circle of shorter and smaller posts, which 
are also forked. The shortest posts are not 
more than five or six feet in height. On the 
circle first set up, timbers of considerable size 
are laid, reaching from one to another. On 
the outer circle of smaller and shorter posts, 
timbers are also laid in the same manner. Nu- 
merous pieces of wood are now set up in an 
inclined position, enclosing the outer circle of 
the posts, with one end of each resting on the 
ground, and the other against the timbers laid 
on the outer posts. To these pieces of wood 
large rods are tied with slips of bark. Large 
poles, of a sufficient length, are now laid on, 
the laro;er ends restino- on the timbers of the 
outer circle of posts, while the others pass up 
over the timbers of the inner posts, leaving only 
space enough at the top for the smoke to pass 



20 MISSION TO THE 

out. To these poles large rods are also tied. 
All these together constitute the frame-work 
of the lodge. 

Jane. What are they covered with ? 

Clifford. A coat of grass is laid over these 
poles and rods ; and over this a coat of earth 
about twelve inches thick. 

Robert. Do they not resemble huge coal- 
pits ? 

Clifford. I think they must, from the de- 
scription given by Mr. Dunbar. The entrance 
to these habitations is through a lono- narrow 
space way, which always projects from the 
main building, in the Grand Pawnee village, 
towards the east. This space way is also cov- 
ered with grass and earth, like the rest of the 
building. Within the lodge, the earth is beat 
down hard, and forms the floor. 

Jane. W^here is the fire-place ? 

Clifford. !n the centre; and it is made 
by digging a circle about three feet across and 
eight inches deep. The dirt scooped out is 
pounded down hard, to form the hearth. A 
stake is firmly set in the earth, near the hearth, 
in an inchned position, and serves the purpos- 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 21 

es of a crane. Rush mats are spread down 
round the fire, on which the family sit. 

Jane. Do their lodges contain separate 
apartments, or only one room ? 

Clifford. Some have but one room ; but 
in most of them, a frame-work is raised next to 
the wall, about two feet from the floor ; on this 
are placed small rods platted together, and over 
these are laid rush mats. At proper distances 
partitions are made by screens of mats or plat- 
ted willow twigs. These are the beds and 
sleeping apartments, in front of which mats are 
hung up like curtains. In some lodges the 
simple platform alone is to be seen, without 
either partitions or curtains ; while in others 
there is not even the platform, and the inmates 
sleep on the floor. 

In many lodges, several families live together. 
Each family has its particular portion of the 
dwelling, and the boundaries of each are so 
well defined as to prevent contention, and the 
furniture of each is kept separate. 

Mrs. Barton. They must be very accom- 
modating, or they could not live peaceably in 
such a state. 

3 



22 MISSION TO THE 

Clifford. Mr. Dunbar says they are very 
accommodating, borrowing and lending almost 
any thing they have, without the least hesita- 
tion. When a member of either of the fami- 
lies residing in the same lodge cooks, a portion 
of the food is given to every individual of the 
household, without regard to family distinc- 
tions. 

Jane, How do the Pawnee females dress ? 

Clifford. In a very simple manner. The 
garments of the more wealthy are made of 
cloth ; and those of the poorer sort, of the skins 
of the buffalo dressed soft. The boys are 
suffered to go naked, in summer, till they are 
from six to ten years of age, but the girls wear 
some sort of a garment from infancy. The 
common dress of women consists of a garment, 
confined with a girdle or belt around the waist, 
which falls a little below the knee ; another is 
suspended by narrow pieces from the shoulders, 
and falls rather below the girdle. Their leg- 
gins extend from the knee to the ankle. A 
buffalo robe completes the dress. 

Helen. Then the neck, shoulders and 
arms are left uncovered, are they not ? 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 23 

Clifford. Yes ; except when covered by 
the robe. The dress of the men consists of a 
pair of buckskin leggins, cloth and girdle about 
the waist, a buffalo robe and moccasons. 

When Mr. Dunbar first entered the village, 
his fur cap and boots attracted universal atten- 
tion. The men took the cap, examined it, 
and tried it on, one after another, and expressed 
their admiration by very significant signs. The 
women appeared to be more interested in his 
boots than any other part of his dress, and as 
soon as their courage permitted, they asked if 
he would let them see how he got them off, 
and put them on. 

Jane. Had they never seen a white man 
before ? 

Clifford. I suppose but few of them had ; 
for the Pawnees have had less intercourse with 
the whites than almost any other tribe east of 
the Rocky mountains. 

Mrs. Barton. Then of course as a people, 
they are not addicted to drunkenness. 

Clifford. True they are not drunkards ; 
but perhaps the only reason why they are not, 
is their remote situation, and the difficulty of 



24 MISSION TO THE 

obtaining the means. Though they have not 
yet become drunkards they are great gamblers, 
and play away almost any thing they happen 
to possess. 



CHAPTER II. 

Moral character — Te-rah-wah — Conjurers — Winter hunt 
— Summer hunt — Procession — Tents — Female labors 
— Customs and habits of the men — Polygamy — Bluffs 
— Prairies — Platte river — The hunting-ground — Prepa- 
ration of meat — Indian dance — Music — Pawnee instru- 
ments of music. 

Helen. What do our missionaries say of 
the religion and morals of the Pawnees ? 

Mr. Clifford. In speaking of their moral 
character, they say that they do not know 
that they outwardly violate the first and sec- 
ond commandments, but the fourth is wholly 
disregarded ; the fifth is violated ; the sixth is 
often broken ; the seventh very rarely if ever 
kept ; the eighth disregarded, and the last two 
are not known. 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 25 

Helen. If they do not break the second 
commandment, how can they be idolaters ? 

Clifford. If not idolaters, they are destitute 
of any correct knowledge of the living and true 
God, and have never heard the story of re- 
deeming love. 

Mrs. Barton. Perhaps they talk about 
the Great Spirit, as other Indians do. 

Clifford. They talk about the great and 
good Te-rah-wah, to whom they offer sacrifi- 
ces. Their religious ceremonies and observ- 
ances are very numerous ; but their religious 
festivals are generally nothing more than glut- 
tonous feasts. 

Robert. Will you please to tell us how 
they offer sacrifices to Te-rah-wah ? 

Clifford. They say, when the weather is 
cold and stormy, that Te-rah-wah is bad, but 
in mild pleasant weather he is good. When 
it thunders, they say he speaks. They appear 
to think he is changeable like themselves, 
sometimes angry, and sometimes pleased. 
Like all others, in a heathen state, they are 
exceedingly superstitious. The feats perform- 
ed by conjurers, witches, and other impostors, 



26 MISSION TO THE 

are by the generality of the people believed to 
be as much realities, as the succession of day 
and night ; and the influence exerted by these 
deceivers is of the most pernicious and debas- 
ing kind. Respecting a future state, their 
minds are shrouded in Egyptian darkness. 
Not one ray of light or of hope shines through 
the dark passage of the grave ; and were not 
their religious ceremonies connected with eat- 
ing, smoking and singing, it is probable they 
would be almost entirely neglected, unless when 
under the excitement of fear. The professed 
object of their religious festivals is, to procure 
good and healthful seasons, good crops, and 
prosperity in all their undertakings. One of 
the greatest of these festivals is always held 
immediately after coming in from their winter 
hunt. 

Jane. How many hunts do they have in a 
year ? 

Clifford. Two. The winter hunt com- 
mences in October and ends in March ; and 
the summer hunt commences in July, and in 
September they return to their villages to 
gather in the corn, beans, pumpkins, and gar- 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 27 

den vegetables which they planted in the 
spring. 

Robert. Then they are wanderers about 
seven months, and farmers about five months 
each year. 

Clifford. The wives and daughters do 
the farming, and most of the labor that is per- 
formed during the hunting tour, and almost 
the whole care and labor of preparing for these 
excursions devolves on them. 

A.nn. Cousin Hugh, you said Mr. Dunbar 
stopped five days at the Grand Pawnee village. 
Where did he then go ? 

ClifforcL He accompanied the chief and 
all his people on their winter hunt. 

Robert. What object had he in view, in 
pursuing such a course ? 

Clifford, In all his intercourse with the 
Indians, his object was to learn their language, 
win their confidence, teach them the doctrines 
and duties of Christianity, and the value of 
schools and the arts of civilized life, and grad- 
ually spread out before them the advantages 
and comforts of a settled mode of life. It was 
also important that he should learn the habits, 



28 MISSION TO THE 

customs and manners of the people for whose 
benefit he had consecrated his life. 

From the time Mr. Dunbar entered the 
village, the females were busily employed in 
making arrangements for the expedition, and 
at length the whole village was on the move. 
The furniture, tentSj and all sorts of movables 
were packed on the various animals in use 
among the Pawnees. Like others of their 
race, they travel Indian file. The proces- 
sion was, when all got under way, about four 
miles long. The women, boys and girls led 
each of them a horse, and walked in the path 
before them. The men straggled about every 
where. A few walked by the side of their 
wives or daughters, and occasionally gave 
them some trifling assistance in managing the 
horses. 

What a spectacle to see a procession ex- 
tending four miles, consisting of men, women, 
children, horses, mules, asses and dogs ! 

The number of animals, in all, was esti- 
mated by Mr. Dunbar at six thousand. After 
traveling about eight miles in tliis style, they 
encamped for the night. The poles for each 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 29 

tent number from twelve to twenty, according 
to the size. From three to six of these are 
tied together at the largest end, and made fast 
to the saddle, — an equal number on each side, 
— and the other end drags on tlie ground. 
The tents are always set up with their entrance 
towards the east. At the top, the smoke 
passes out among the poles, — -a place being 
left for that purpose. The fire-place, crane 
and hearth are similar to those in their lodges. 
The furniture is placed back next the cover. 
Rush mats are then spread down, forming a 
sort of floor. On these they sit, eat and 
sleep. 

Robert. How large are the tents ? 

Clifford. The large ones are about eight- 
een feet across on the ground. 

Jane. With what do they cover them ? 

Clifford. The tent covers are made of 
buffalo skins sewed together, and scraped so 
thin as to transmit light. These, when new, 
are quite white, and an encampment pre- 
sents a most beautiful appearance. Some of 
them are painted according to Indian fancy. 
A bear-skin is commonly suspended over the 
entrance. 



30 MISSION TO THE 

As soon as they arrive at the place of en- 
campment, each household selects its spot, the 
horses are immediately unpacked, and the tents 
set up, and a populous village starts up almost 
instantaneously. 

Helen, I hope all this labor is not perform- 
ed by the females. 

Clifford. Yes, it is. They set up and 
take down all the tents ; bridle and unbridle, 
saddle and unsaddle, pack and unpack all the 
horses ; make all the moccasons, mats, bags, 
bowls and mortars ; and after pitching the 
tents for the night, they have all the cooking 
to do, of course. The Pav/nees, except the 
little children, do not usually take any food in 
the morning before they start on their day's 
journey ; but as soon as they stop at night, they 
hasten to prepare supper, and when ready, 
they make ample amends for their past absti- 
nence, and eat till they are weary. 

Early in the morning, the heralds are seen 
passing through the camp, and with a loud 
voice they proclaim the order of the day, as 
directed by the principal chief. If he gives 
marching orders, the boys, — to whom is as- 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 31 

signed the care of the animals, — are immedi- 
ately despatched to bring ihem up. The 
women then proceed to take down the tents, 
and pack them, with all their contents and 
appendages, on their horses. They then set 
forward, without waiting for company. Some 
of the Pawnee families own twenty horses, 
others ten, and almost all of them more than 
one. These Indians seldom travel more than 
six or eight miles in a day, if wood and water 
are to be found at such distances. 

Jane. I pity the poor Pawnee women very 
much. It is a sad thing to be a heathen. 

Clifford. Yes, it is sad to be a heathen 
man ; but women are the greatest sufferers in 
all those countries where the pure light of the 
gospel has never shed its heavenly influence. 
The Pawnee women are naturally bright and 
active ; but the treatment they receive is cal- 
culated to debase them almost to the level of 
brutes. When together in the lodge, the men 
sit round the fire, and the wives and daughters 
must sit back behind them, however cold it 
may be. If they have more baggage than 
can conveniently be packed on their horsesj 



32 MISSION TO THE 

the women must carry it ; and sometimes they 
carry huge loads a whole day's journey with- 
out stopping. Mr. Dunbar says he has seen 
droves of the women and girls, with their hoes 
or axes on their shoulders, starting off to their 
day's work. The men call up the wives and 
daughters as soon as it is light, and set them 
at work. They will often work from sunrise till 
sunset, when digging ground-nuts, or as they 
are sometimes called, Indian potatoes, without 
getting more than a peck to carry home. 

Helen. If these women were as tender as 
the whites, the Pawnees would soon be with- 
out wives and daughters. 

Clifford. True. Very few white v\'omcn 
could endure the fatigue and exposure conse- 
quent on the mode of life adopted by these 
Indians. Sometimes the Pawnee women will 
have to go many miles to cut timber. When 
it happens to grow on an island in the river, 
after cutting it down, they tie two or three 
sticks together, and haul them down the stream. 
It would bring tears to your eyes, to see these 
poor women and girls wading in the water, 
dragging these timbers after them. They not 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 33 

only cut and haul the timber, but actually 
build all the houses and tents, dress all the 
skins for the tent covers, which is done with 
no small labor, sew them together, and fit them 
for the tents ; make all the robes, which are 
many, both for their own use and the market ; 
cut all the wood and bring it on their backs : 
and make all the fires. Besides all this, they 
dry all the meat, dig the ground, plant, hoe, 
and harvest all that is raised in both fields and 
gardens. Whenever a Pawnee wishes to ride, 
he sends a boy after his horse, which, when 
brought up, his wife saddles. When he returns, 
he dismounts, and walks directly into his lodge, 
and the wife must, without delay, take oft' the 
saddle and bring it in. If he goes out to hunt 
with a gun, the wife must bridle and saddle 
his horse ; and when about time to expect 
him to return, she must meet him without the 
village, and lead in his horse with the meat, 
which she throws off*, and brings into the lodge, 
then unbridles and unsaddles his horse. If he 
brings the meat on his back, his wife must 
meet him as before, take the meat from his 
back on her own, and bring it to the lodge. 
4 



34 MISSION TO THE 

Mrs. Barton. I never heard of more labo- 
rious women in my life. Are they not sullen 
and depressed under their accumulated labors? 

Clifford. No ; they are extremely talk- 
ative. One of the missionaries said, that they 
either possessed the faculty of talking and 
hearing at the same time, or were so predis- 
posed to loquacity, that they talked without 
caring to be heard. They often scold as well 
as talk, and the bad treatment they experience 
often renders them very ill-natured. 

Mrs. Barton. 1 suppose polygamy is prac- 
tised by the Pawnees ; and wherever it pre- 
vails, it is vain to look for domestic peace and 
quiet. 

Clifford. Some Pawnees have seven or 
eight wives ; the more wives a man has in this 
tribe, the more laborers he has, and of course 
the more corn he raises and the richer he is. 
Among the Pawnee Laups a man commonly 
marries all the sisters of a family, be they 
manv or few. When the sons arrive at man- 
hood, the mothers become as much slaves to 
them as to their husbands. 

Robert. How far was the hunting ground 
from the Grand Pawnee Village ? 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 35 

Clifford. About one hundred miles ; but 
for many years, the Indians say, the buffaloes 
have not descended the Platte so low as in the 
autumn of 1834. The Pawnees attributed 
their coming down so low, that season, to the 
coming of a missionary to live with them. 

Helen. In what direction did they travel ? 

Clifford. Their route from the village lay 
along the south side of the river Platte. Jane, 
can you tell me any thing about this river? 

Jane. It is a broad and rapid stream, but 
shallow, except during the spring and June 
freshets. It is easily forded when the water 
is low; but when it is high, tlie crossing is 
difficult, on account of the numerous quick- 
sands. It abounds with islands, some of which 
are nothing more than a cluster of bushes, 
while others are several miles in extent. Some 
of these islands are covered with wood, others 
are prairies. It has its source in the Rocky 
mountains, near that of the Arkansas river. 

Clifford. Very well. You might have 
added, that it flows above eight hundred miles 
east, till it unites witli the Missouri ; and also, 
that durino; the dry season the channel of this 



36 MISSION TO THE 

river appears like a broad bed of sand, with 
several small streams winding their way 
through it. The bluffs are usually some dis- 
tance from the river, but in some places come 
down to the water's edge. 

Robert. The bluffs, I suppose, are hills. 

Clifford. Yes ; some of them are in long 
parallel ridges, others are in the form of cones 
and pyramids. In some parts of the western 
country, bluffs are formed by precipices of lime- 
stone rock, from fifty to one or two hundred 
feet high. 

Jane, you said that some of the islands in 
the river Platte were prairies. What is a 
prairie ? 

Jane. Pasture land. 

Clifford. Prairie is a French word, signi- 
fying meadow, and is applied to any descrip- 
tion of surface that is destitute of timber and 
brushwood, and clothed with grass. The 
steppes of Tartary, the pampas of South Amer- 
ica, the savannas of the southern, and the 
prairies of the western States, designate similar 
tracts of country. 

Mrs. Barton. I thank you, cousin Hugh, 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 37 

for these remarks. They will help the chil- 
dren to form correct ideas of the country where 
the Board will, probably, soon multiply mission 
stations, for the benefit of the numerous tribes 
of Indians in that region. 

Clifford. I will now return to our mission- 
ary whom we left traveling on the south side 
of the river Platte to the buffalo country. 
After journeying eleven days, the Pawnees 
stopped, and all hands of them went out a few 
miles, and in one day they took three hundred 
of these animals. The next day the whole 
village moved up to the place of slaughter, 
and as soon as the tents were set up and things 
put in order, a course of feasting commenced 
in true Pawnee fashion. 

Robert. How do the Pawnees preserve 
such large quantities of meat ? 

Clifford. When the meat is brought to the 
lodge, the women take their knives and cut it 
for drying, rolling it out in thin and very large 
pieces. This being done, they spread it on a 
sort of hurdle over a slow fire outside of the 
tent. When it has dried some, but not so 
much as to become hard, it is taken down and 
4* 



38 MISSION TO THE 

pounded out flat with their feet, or with a 
wooden pestle. This operation is performed 
several times while the meat is drying, and is 
done that the meat may pack close, when 
dried hard. When thoroughly dry, it is folded 
in pieces two and a half feet long, and one 
and a half broad. These pieces are done up 
in balls, and enclosed in skins prepared for the 
purpose and often fancifully painted. 

The third night after the Grand Pawnees 
had reached the hunting ground, the Pawnee 
Laups encamped within five miles of them. 
The next day Mr. Dunbar, in company with 
a son of his host, the principal chief, rode out 
to the Laup to see Mr. Allis. 

Jane. How did he find him ? 

Clifford. In fine health, and good spirits. 
The chief with whom he traveled treated him 
with great kindness ; furnished him with abun- 
dance of food, and allowed him the highest 
place of honor in the tent. At that time about 
two thousand Ricaree Indians, commonly call- 
ed Rees, were with the Laups. They are 
very hostile to the whites, and among the most 
cruel and reveno;eful of their race. Although 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 39 

they have behaved pretty well, since they came 
to live with the Pawnees, yet it was the de- 
termination of many of the Laups, to drive 
them off the next summer. Mr. Allis says he 
once saw the Laups dance before the Rees, 
for two or three scalps of the Rapenhees, and 
gave them four or five horses, ten guns, two 
tents, dogs, blankets, kettles, hoes, axes, pipeSj 
he. He said it was a most horrible sight. 

Jane. Did Mr. Dunbar never witness an 
Indian dance ? 

Clifford. Yes, he saw one called a bear 
dance. It was held to procure success for a 
large party, which expected to start the next 
day to visit the Itan Indians, the Kiewas, and 
the Pawnee Picts. It was a trading visit, and 
they carried large supplies of blankets, guns, 
powder and ball, knives, paints, tobacco and 
other things in great demand among all In- 
dians. 

Jane. How far did they expect to go? 

Clifford. About three hundred miles, if 
we allow ten miles a day, for they expected to 
be absent about sixty sleeps. 

Robert. Who performed this dance ? 



40 MISSION TO THE 

Clifford. The first chiefs and about ihh'ty 
of their warriors. These dressed themselves 
fancifully, and with many ceremonies com- 
menced dancing at sunset, and continued danc- 
ing and singing through the whole night, only 
pausing long enough to eat. The Pawnees 
are excessively fond of singing, and not unfre- 
quently the men meet at some lodge, and 
there sit, smoke, and tell over their exploits 
till a late hour, when, instead of going home, 
they fall to singing, and sing for hours. When 
they awake in the night, they often break out 
into singing, and continue it till they are wea- 
ry, or fall asleep again. The men, when at 
home, sleep as much, perhaps more, during 
the day than night. The women neither 
smoke nor sing. 

Jane. Is their singing melodious ? 

Clifford. No ; it corresponds with the in- 
strumental music which usually accompanies 
it. A favorite instrument is made of an empty 
gourd shell. When this is perfectly dry and 
hard, a handful of shot is put in, and the aper- 
ture closed. Tills is shaken in time to the 
singing. Another instrument is made by 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 41 

Straining a piece of buckskin over a powder 
cask, which, when beat upon, sounds some- 
thing like a drum. Besides these, they have 
a sort of flute or fife, made of the stalk of a 
sugar cane, and the music is similar to that 
made by little boys with the stem of a pump- 
kin or squash leaf. 

Mrs. Barton. The missionaries who follow 
these Indians in their migrations, must practise 
more self-denial than usually falls to the lot 
even of missionaries. 

Clifford. Yes, they must practise more 
self-denial than those who are surrounded 
with friends and Christian privileges can easi- 
ly imagine. Only think of their situation, 
without an interpreter or other medium of 
communication with the Indians, except by 
signs, and the words which they learned from 
day to day. 

Mrs. Barton. And yet all this is necessary, 
and must be practised by somebody, before 
they can be instructed in religion, or books be 
prepared ; and without a knowledge of the lan- 
guage, neither books, schools, nor religious 
worship can be introduced among them to* 
much purpose. 



42 MISSION TO THE 

Jane. Come, cousin, do let us now hear 
about their religious festivals. 



CHAPTER III. 

Religious festivals — Sacrifices — Sacred things — Fear of 
death — Funeral ceremonies — Mourning — Treatment of 
the sick — Indian doctors — Heath lamentations. 

I have already told you, said Hugh Clifford, 
that these religious festivals were often if not 
always gluttonous feasts. 

If a young man designs offering a buffalo 
in sacrifice to their deity (Te-rah-wah), he car- 
ries the entire animal to the lodge of some per- 
son, to whom the business belongs, who in- 
vites about a dozen aged men to come and 
feast with him, and assist in performing the 
ceremonies usual on such occasions. 

The sacred things, as they are called, are 
always suspended from the poles of the tent or 
lodge, directly opposite the entrance. The 
usual time to commence one of these festivals 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 43 

is at sunset. On one occasion, when the bun- 
dle of sacred things was opened, the following 
articles were arranged in due order. A buffa- 
lo robe appeared first, then the skins of a bea- 
ver, an otter and several other furry animals. 
Then eame rods of arrows taken from their 
enen)ies, the skull of a wild-cat and two ears 
of corn. The master of ceremonies then 
ordered different persons to puff smoke on 
them from their pipes ; to stroke them with 
their hands ; to make one or more speeches, 
and offer a prayer. The buffalo was then cut 
in pieces and cooked, with the exception of 
the heart and tongue ; which were burned 
outside of the lodge. The flesh, when cooked, 
was divided into as many equal portions as 
there were individuals present ; and after the 
whole was consumed, the sacred bundle was 
res-tored to its accustomed place. This is the 
way they make a sacrifice. But after coming 
in from the winter hunt, several festivals are 
simultaneously held in different parts of the 
village. 

On these occasions, there are many other 
things accounted sacred brought forward, in 



44 MISSION TO THE 

addition those to I have already noticed ; such as 
several bundles of scalps, and the stuffed skins 
of a number of sacred birds ; also the skull of 
an old bull, red paint, &tc. With the paint 
the master of ceremonies painted his face, 
breasts, arms and legs ; he then divided the 
paint, and gave one half to the person at his 
right hand, and the other to the one next on 
his left. These painted themselves precisely 
like the first named, and then passed the paint 
to those next to them, and so on till all were 
painted. A man then stood behind the bul- 
lock's skull, and passed his right hand, be- 
daubed with paint, three times from the nose 
backwards over the centre of the cranium, 
then each hand from the corner of the mouth, 
on either side, to the tip of the horn. Next, 
five rods were whittled and painted, and bits 
of scalps fastened to them. Four of the rods 
were set up, — one to the east, one to the west, 
another to the north, and another to the south 
of the lodge. The fifth was set up, directly 
in front of the bull's skull. The ceremony 
of smoking the sacred pipe was performed 
next, and the smoke was puffed upward and 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 45 

downward, toward the four points of the com- 
pass, on the bull's pate, and on all the sacred 
thlno-s. Four buffalo tongues and hearts were 
now taken out and burned without the lodge, 
and then followed several speeches, and a sort 
of prayer. The contents of two large kettles, 
in which corn had been boiling from the com- 
mencement, with the buffalo tongues, hearts 
and meat that had been cooked, were divided 
and set before the company. After feasting 
on these dainties till they could swallow no 
more, the sacred things were again ceremoni- 
ously packed up, and suspended in their ap- 
propriate place. I forgot to tell you that the 
bull's pate did not fail to get a liberal offering 
of the boiled corn, which they carefully set 
before it. 

Mi's. Barton. Who will not pray that 
these dark minds may be enlightened, and 
these disgusting and senseless rites give place 
to the pure and spiritual worship of the ever- 
livino- and true God ? 

Clifford. I think that every friend of 
Christ, and of the heathen, will pray with 
importunity and fervency for the coming of 
5 



46 MISSION TO THE 

Christ's kingdom among the Pawnee and all 
other tribes of heathen Indians. When the 
blessings of salvation shall be experienced 
among this people, they, like many of the 
Cherokees and Choctaws, will abandon their 
superstitious ceremonies and wandering habits, 
and become an industrious, holy and happy 
tribe of men. 

]\lrs. Barton. 1 often find myself yielding 
to feelings bordering upon despondency, when 
I think over the long and tedious process of 
elevating the Pawnees and the heathen gener- 
ally to the standard of civilization and Chris- 
tianity enjoyed in Europe and America. 

Clifford. Give to the Pawnees a written 
language, books, schools, and a preached gos- 
pel, and you may expect to see them rise, and 
take an equal stand with other Christian na- 
tions. But it is unreasonable to yield to de- 
jection on their account, till you have brought 
them under the same means and influences 
which, in times past, have been blessed to the 
moral and religious elevation of the natives of 
so many other heathen countries. 

Helen. Do these Indians express as great 
fear of death, as is common among savages? 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 47 

Clifford. Yes. One day in March, not 
long; before the Pawnees were about returnintr 
to their village, when the men were walking 
to and fro, the women all busily engaged in 
their various labors, and the children playing 
in high glee, suddenly a doleful howling 
commenced in one part of the encampment, 
which was instantly responded to from every 
quarter. Every countenance was solemn, and 
sorrow marked every savage form. 

Jane. Who had died ? 

Clifford. Mr. Dunbar was told, that a 
man of some consequence had suddenly fallen 
dead while sitting in his lodge. Hoping it 
might be only a fainting-fit, he hastened to 
afford relief; but the lodge was so crowded, 
that he found no opportunity to enter, or even 
to get a glimpse of the dead man. He said 
the wife, children and relations gave vent to 
their grief in the most frantic manner. On 
another occasion, Mr. Dunbar saw several 
women bearing the lifeless remains of a little 
child, that had died the preceding night, to its 
burial. He said that they carried It a short 
distance, then placed the body on the ground, 



48 MISSION TO THE 

and stopped and wept awhile ; they then took 
it up and went forward again, all the while 
howling sadly. The father, a young man, 
followed at a little distance, appearing in an 
agony of grief. Though the day was very 
cold, and the ground covered with snow and 
ice, the man wore no clothing, except the 
cloth about the loins. In this condition, he 
remained weeping at the grave two hours or 
more. It appeared to Mr. Dunbar, that he 
was in danger of freezing to death ; but his 
mind seemed to be so absorbed in his grief, 
that he appeared to be insensible to the cold. 

Helen. If they make such an ado, when 
a person is dead, in what way do they express 
their concern when their friends are in a sick 
and dying state ? 

Clifford. I think I told you, that while 
Mr. Dunbar was on his way from the agency 
to the Grand Pawnee village, he passed a 
place where a party of Pawnees had encamped 
the night previous, and also that a fire had 
swept over a large tract of interval, and burned 
five of the Pawnees to death, or had so much 
injured them, that they soon died of their 
burns. 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 49 

Jane. You told us something about the 
weeping and waiHng of their relations, but 
nothing about the treatment of those that were 
carried alive to the village. 

Cliffords Well, one of these men who 
had been burned, was carried into the lodge 
occupied by Mr. Dunbar, and he had an 
opportunity to witness their treatment of the 
sick, and also some of their funeral customs. 
You must know that smoking holds a promi- 
nent place in all important business among the 
Pawnees. It is, indeed, a part of their religion, 
and intimately connected with all their religious 
observances, as well as medical practice. 
When the doctors came to prescribe for the 
poor man's burns, they, in the first place, sat 
down and smoked. After receiving the pipe, 
one of them held it up over his head and 
muttered something, then brought it down 
before him, and took from the bowl, with his 
thumb and finger, a very small part of that 
with which it was filled, and with great care 
placed it on the hearth. The pipe being 
lighted, he puffed the smoke upward two or 
three times, then downward as many, then 
5* 



50 MISSION TO THE 

east, west, north and south. Then taking the 
bowl in his hand, he held the pipe to the other 
doctor, who, taking hold of the stem, and 
putting it to his mouth, proceeded to puft^ the 
smoke as the other had done. The pipe was 
now passed back and forth between the two 
doctors, till its contents were consumed. Then 
came the ceremony of emptying the pipe, 
which must be performed by the person who 
had the honor of lighting it. The ashes were 
carefully poured out on the hearth, on that 
which had been before deposited there. He 
then put the ends of his fingers on them, 
and proceeded to pass his hands in succession 
upward from the bowl to the end of the stem. 
When he had done this several times, he 
handed the pipe to the person to whom it 
belonged, who did the same. 

Havino- sone throuirh with these pielimina- 
ries, the doctors began to examine the sick 
man's burns. When the examination was 
completed, they commenced their incantations. 
A bowl of water was set before one of them, 
who, having filled iiis moutli willi it, groaned, 
beat his breast with his hands, crept backward 



PAWNEE INDIANS, 51 

and then forward on his hands and feet, took 
up dust and rubbed it in his hands, made many 
frightful gestures, and then pretended to vomit 
the water on the hearth, which had all the 
while been in his mouth. After repeating all 
these ceremonies, he proceeded to separate the 
sick man's hair and blow the water in small 
quantities on his head, breast and other parts 
of his body. When these things had been 
repeated several times, he again separated the 
hair of his patient, and placing his mouth, 
filled with water, close to his head, groaned 
and grunted as if trying with all his might to 
draw out something, then spirted the vv'ater 
on the hearth, as though it had been drawn 
from the head of his patient. The doctors 
repeated this operation on various parts of the 
body of the poor sufferer. After blowing dust 
on the man's head, breast and other parts, the 
conjuration was completed by sprinklmg a 
powder over the burns, and then the doctors 
took their leave. 

Robert. Flow often did they repeat tlieir 
visits? 

Clifford, Twice a day till the man died. 



52 MISSION TO THE 

Jane. How did they look ? 

Clifford. More like fiends than like human 
beings. These horrible creatures came while 
the man lay in the agonies of death, and with 
redoubled fury repeated all their infernal 
actions and unearthly noises, and no doubt 
hastened the departure of the dying man. 

As soon as the man ceased breathing, his 
wives, children and relations broke out in the 
most doleful lamentations. His wives vented 
their sorrow at the highest pitch of their voicesj 
pulled their hair over their faces, and after a 
while they pulled their robes over them so as 
to cover their whole persons. In the morning, 
as soon as it was light, the man was carried to 
the grave, followed by his wives and friends 
loudly howling all the way* The women 
staid by the grave several days, lamenting their 
loss, and when they returned to the lodge, they 
covered themselves with their buffalo robes, 
and sat mourning in silence. After witness* 
ing all this and much more, Mr. Dunbar breaks 
out in his journal, " I felt it was no small bless- 
ing to be born and educated in a Christian 
land. What inestimable privileges are there 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 53 

enjoyed, and how little prized ! It is all owing 
to the mere grace of Almighty God, that I 
am not even viler than the vilest of these 
heathen." 

Mrs. Barton. O what a contrast between 
the tumultuous scene you have described, and 
the sweet peace and quiet so often exhibited 
by the dying Christian, surrounded by pious 
friends ! 

Jane. Were the sick man's wives kind to 
him in his sickness ? 

Clifford. Yes, in their way ; but the 
tenderest attentions of the heathen are often 
cruel. They brought him food and urged him 
repeatedly to eat, and often brought him water, 
and showed a willingness to change his position 
as often as he requested it. He was every 
day carried out into the open air, — as soon as 
it was light in the morning, and at twilight in 
the evening. 

Perhaps, aunt, I had better stop here, lest 
your despondency respecting the Indians should 
be increased by hearing more concerning their 
degradation and cruel superstitions. 

Mrs. Barton. No ; we must see and feel 



54 MISSION TO THE 

existing evils before we shall in good earnest 
set about removing them. 

As Christians we ought, and we must pray 
more, and sympathize more with these solitary 
missionaries, in all their wanderings with the 
Indians ; for if their faith fails, and they be- 
come disheartened and overwhelmed in view 
of all the abominations they witness, and all 
the obstacles which Satan and wicked men 
throw in their way, the present generation of 
Pawnees will never be led into the narrow 
path to heaven. 

Clifford, I have no fear that either Chris- 
tians or missionaries will labor in vain, or spend 
their strength for nought, in efforts for the 
conversion of the world. 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 55 



CHAPTER IV. 

Indian chase — Feasts — Second missionary tour — Enlarge- 
ment of the mission — Departure of Doct. Satterlee — 
Sickness and death of Mrs. Satterlee — Reception of Dr. 
S. by the Pawnees — War party — Battle— Successful 
treatment of a wounded warrior — Indian gratitude. 

" Now, cousin ClifTord," said Robert, " I 
should like to know how the Indians contrive 
to take such droves of buffalo as you say they 
sometimes do." 

Clifford. When they took three hundred, 
in one afternoon, they called it a surround, but 
as Mr. Dunbar was at that time rather unwell, 
he did not see how they managed ; but I think 
he said it was made in three hours. Mr. 
Allis says the Laups took six hundred in two 
or three days. On Christmas day, our mis- 
sionary was in the procession as usual, and 
about three o'clock in the afternoon, droves of 
bufl^alo were seen on both sides of them, and 
orders were immediately issued to stop, and 



56 MISSION TO THE 

the young men mounted their horses, and set 
off at full speed to kill them. 

Robert. I should admire to witness an 
Indian chase. 

Clifford. These wild hunters get as near 
as they can to the buffalo, without being seen 
by them. The moment the animal sees its 
pursuer, it moves off with all the rapidity of 
which it is capable. A race ensues ; but it is 
not long, usually, if the ground be favorable, 
before an Indian overtakes his prey, and des- 
patches it. When the huntsmen come up 
with the buffalo they are pursuing, they ride 
alongside of it, at a little distance, and, quick 
as thought, shoot one, two, or more arrows into 
it. The buffalo sometimes falls dead on the 
spot, sometimes stops, stands still, shakes its 
head, menaces its pursuer, and bellows and 
groans, till exhausted, it expires. Sometimes 
it becomes furious, turns on the hunter, and if 
he is not so fortunate as to get out of the way, 
upsets both the horse and the rider. 

Aim. 1 did not know that hunting was 
such a dangerous business before. 

Clifford. It is dangerous ; but the Paw- 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 57 

nees are superior liorsemen, and often escape, 
when to any other but an Indian, death would 
appear inevitable. 

Robert. To us, hunting buffalo would be 
hard, as well as dangerous. 

Clifford. I know it would ; but it is mere 
sport for the Pawnees. It would also be harder 
for us to wander about as they do, than it 
would to labor in the most wearisome employ- 
ment. Mr. Dunbar followed them five months 
and five days, and I suppose there was not an 
[ndian in the whole band, that had not made 
just such a tour every winter since he was 
born. 

Mrs. Barton. To the women and children 
it must be very fatiguing. 

Clifford. It is doubtless harder for them 
than for the men ; but all love this mode of 
life, and I suppose will cling to it with as tena- 
cious a grasp as any other Indian tribe. 

Mrs. Barton. May not their attachment 
to this mode of life arise from their not know- 
ing any other ? I presume that all the tribes 
around them wander as they do. 

Clifford. The missionaries often tell them 
6 



58 MISSION TO THE 

how the whites hve, and they uniformly say, 
" It is good." But as yet they show no desire 
to adopt civihzed habits. What Indian, think 
you, would give up one of his winter feasts, 
in exchange for one of our social parties ? 

Jane. Then they have social as well as 
religious festivals ? I hope the women have 
some part in these. 

Clifford. Yes ; but it is only the labori- 
ous part. When a man designs to make a 
feast, he orders one of his wives to hang the 
big brass-kettle over the fire, and fill it with 
corn and beans to boil. This order is given 
and executed at night. Early in the morning 
he sends for two men, whose business it is to 
serve on such occasions. When they arrive, 
he smokes with them ; then orders one of them 
to wait on the first chief and invite him to his 
lodt^e, and in case he should be absent, the 
second. The chief comes with his pipe and 
tobacco, and after smoking together awhile, 
the man who makes the feast states his object 
to the chief, who directs the two men who 
serve to go through the village or encamp- 
ment, and invite to the feast such persons as 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 59 

he names. The kettle is now taken from the 
fire and placed near the entrance of the tent 
or lodge, and a quantity of buffalo tallow put 
into it. The women are excluded from the 
dwelling from this time till the feast is ended, 
and the guests are retired. The children, 
also, disappear with the women. When the 
men have given the invitations directed, they 
return to the dwelling and smoke again ; then 
they are sent to borrow bowls for the feast. 
The guests are usually the chiefs and the first 
men in the village ; and when they arrive, if 
there are not enough to fill the lodge, more are 
sent for, till it is completely filled. The com- 
pany form two circles, the most honorable 
near the fire, the other back near the tent 
cover. Every man, on entering the lodge, 
stands till he is pointed to a seat by the master 
of the feast. The man who presides now 
names the persons who are to make the 
speeches; a certain number of which are to 
be made on every such occasion. Three or 
four old men are permitted to attend, and pay 
* , for their attendance in speech-making. One, 
% and sometimes two of the old men, begin a 



60 MISSION TO THE 

speech in commendation of the man who feasts 
them ; then they praise the chiefs ; and if 
public business is to be transacted, they state 
it, and give their views on the subject. The 
master of the feast now makes his speech, and 
is followed by a chief or some distinguished 
person who may choose to speak. When 
sufficient praise has been bestowed on the 
master of the feast, the chiefs, &;c., and the 
business is completed, an old man makes a sort 
of prayer, which ends the talking. Some 
person must now count the company, and 
make out how many bowls will be needed, 
two persons eating out of each. When this 
has been determined, some one is called upon 
to distribute the contents of the kettle equally 
in the bowls placed around it. One of these 
bowls is sent to one of their principal priests. 
Another is set before the master of the feast, 
who takes a spoonful of its contents and gives 
the spoon to the person who made the distri- 
bution. He passes round near the entrance, 
puts his right hand on the contents of the 
spoon, and ceremoniously raises it towards the 
door, which opens to the east. He then passes 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 61 

to the opposite side of the fire-place, where 
he lays down the food in two places, about a 
foot apart, — -in one place about three-fourths, 
and in the other the remainder of the spoonful. 
The larger heap is a kind of offering to the 
buffalo, and the smaller for Te-rah-wah. The 
remainder of the bowls are now set before the 
guests, and when the kettle is emptied, and all 
its contents consumed, the bowls are sent 
home, and, after smoking awhile, the company 
thank their feaster, and retire. 

Ann. What an arduous undertaking, to 
transform such idle, gluttonous men into in- 
tellisent, industrious Christians. 

Helen. Arduous indeed ; but not hopeless, 
if the presence and blessing of God accompany 
the efforts of Christians. 

Clifford. We expect his presence and 
blessing, in every enterprise in which we en- 
gage, with a view to spread the knowledge of 
Christ in all parts of the earth. Relying on 
the promises of God, the churches send forth 
preachers of the gospel among the heathen, 
with the anticipation tl)at he will bless their 
labors in future as he has done in years that 
6* 



62 MISSION TO THE 

are past. Education and the gospel, with the 
divine blessing, can, and will do for the Paw- 
nees what they have done for the Hindoos, 
the Burmans, the Sandwich Islanders, and the 
Africvans. 

Robert. Is there any evidence that the 
Pawnees will encourage schools and preaching ? 

Clifford. Yes ; they appear to be favor- 
ably disposed to the establishment of schools 
and the introduction of Christianity ; though, 
at first, they could have no distinct notions of 
the nature or advantages of either. 

Jane. Are the missionaries who accompa- 
nied the Indians on the winter's tour, which 
you have described, still with them ? 

Clifford. Yes ; their first tour was per- 
formed in the winter of 1834 and 1835. 
Durin*: the summer and winter of the followino: 
year, they followed the Indians in the same 
manner, and received as kind treatment. The 
health of both gentlemen has been very good, 
and their proficiency in the language so great, 
as to enable them to converse on common 
topics with little difliculty. 

Jane. Is it not time for other missionaries 
to join them ? 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 63 

Clifford. They have ah-eady been joined 
by others. Early in March, 1836, Doctor 
Benedict Satteilee, his wife, and a Miss Pahii- 
er. the intended wife of Mr. Alhs, all hoin 
Ithica, New York, started for their distant 
field. They proceeded by way of the Ohio 
and Missouri rivers. At Liberty, on the wes- 
tern frontier of Missouri, Mrs. Satterlee became 
ill, and the journey was suspended. She de- 
clined rapidly for about three weeks, till the 
last day of April, when, with calmness and an 
assured hope, she yielded her spirit into the 
hands of her Savior, expressing satisfaction 
that she had devoted herself to the mission, 
though not permitted to reach the contemplated 
field of labor. Her husband reached the Paw- 
nee agency the last week in May, where be 
met Mr. Dunbar. They started from the 
agency, with a band of traders, on the 17th of 
June, for the villages of the Indians, with the 
intention of accompanying them on their sum- 
mer hunt. 

Jane, How was Doct. Satterlee received 
by the Pawnees ? 

Clifford. The Indians had gone before 



64 MISSION TO THE 

the arrival of the missionaries, and they had 
to travel several days before they overtook 
them. The Pawnees said it was their tenth 
sleep from the village, the evening they came 
to the encampment. The camp lay on the 
side of a hill, so that the fires before each tent 
presented a beautiful appearance. Just as 
Messrs, Dunbar and Satterlee were crossing a 
small stream, that ran at the foot of the hill on 
which the Indians were encamped, they were 
discovered. The Pawnees knew Mr. Dunbar, 
and the tidings ran through the camp that 
tapusk [the preacher] had come. They rode 
through the encampment to the lodge of the 
first chief, and their path was beset the whole 
way with Indians wishing to shake hands with 
them. The chief gave them a kind welcome, 
and his wives had scarcely lime to unsaddle 
their horses, before an invitation to a feast was 
sent them ; and before bed-time they were invit- 
ed to two more. In July, the Pawnee Laups 
came to the encampment of the Grand Paw- 
nees, and told them that soon after they left 
their village on their hunt, they were met by a 
war-party of Sioux. A battle ensued, and 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 65 

seven of the Sioux and two of the Laups were 
killed, and some of them wounded. Twenty 
days after the battle, Doct. Satterlee was sent 
for to visit a Laup who had been wounded in 
the hip. He found him laboring under a high 
fever and inflammation ; but, under his treat- 
ment, both very happily yielded ; and he was 
in a few days in a fair way for recovery. To 
show his gratitude to the doctor, the man made 
a feast as soon as he was out of danger, and 
in one of the speeches, on the occasion, the 
following compliment was made to the doctor, 
through the minister, who acted as interpreter: 
" It is good that you come to live with us, and 
have learned our language, so you can talk 
with us ; for if we are sick you can make us 
well again. And what disease have we that 
you cannot cure? This man was dying, and 
you gave him medicine, and he is now getting 
well ; so it is good that you have come to live 
with us." Mr. Dunbar told them that neither 
he nor the doctor could make them well wiih- 
out the help and blessing of God. They said, 
" Yes, it is just so." 



66 MISSION TO THE 



CHAPTER V. 

Pawnee language — Formation of a church — The first 
Pawnee book printed — Marriage of Mr. Dunbar — Pub- 
lic worship — Boarding-schools — Suggestions respecting 
missionary character — Hymn. 

Not long after this, when told that Mr. Dun- 
bar was going to return to his country after the 
summer hunt, the first chief seemed a little dis- 
appointed, but said, "it is good that Kor-na-ar 
(the doctor) should come back soon and go 
with us this winter. We are poor now, and 
have nothing to give you ; but this winter we 
will make both of you a robe." 

Robert. Do the Laups speak the same 
dialect as the Grand Pawnees ? 

Clifford. With the exception of a few 
words. They understand each other perfect- 
ly. Mr. Allis says there are at least twenty 
distinct tribes, occupying the country north, 
west and south of the Pawnees, only four or 
five of which have any Christian teachers. 

Jane. And all of them, I suppose, are as 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 67 

i 

superstitious as those Indians living beyond the 
Rocky mountains. I pity them very much, 
and hope more missionaries will go to the Paw- 
nees every year. Do you know of any who 
are going this spring ? 

Clifford. I do not know that any addition- 
al missionaries have gone to them, since Dr. 
Satterlee and Miss Palmer went, except Mrs. 

' Dunbar. The Committee instructed Mr. Dun- 
bar to come to New England in the autumn of 
1836, to print a small book which he had pre- 

^ pared in the Pawnee language. Before he left 
the tribe, a church was organized under the 
name of the Pawnee Mission Church. 

"^ Helen. What members belonged to it ? 

Clifford, Mr. Dunbar was chosen pastor, 
and the other members were Mr. and Mrs. 
Allis, and Mr. and Mrs. Mentz. 

Jane. Had Mr. Dunbar a wife when he 
first went to the Indian country ? 

^ Clifford. No ; he was not married till 
January, 1837. His wife was a Miss Smith, 
of Hadley, Mass. Mr. and Mrs. Dunbar left 

% the interior of the State of New York in March, 

\> 1837, and returned to the Pawnee country, and 



68 MISSION TO THE 

will soon, I trust, be followed by other mission- 
aries and teachers ; who will as cheerfully take 
up their cross and go to the heathen Indians, 
as those liave done who are already there, and 
on the way thither. 

Mrs. Barton. What an undertaking for a 
lady ! 

Helen. And yet, mother, I often long to 
be in the field. 

Mi's. Barton. I fear that were you in it, 
you would oftener long to be out of it again. 
Have you counted the cost, and realized, in 
any measure, the trials and privations which 
cluster about the path of a female missionary, 
among a savage tribe of wanderers ? It is a 
great thing to be qualified to do good exten- 
sively any where ; but the longer I live, and 
the more I meditate on the condition of the 
heathen world, the more important do the qual- 
ifications of missionaries appear. 1 hope you 
will obtain correct views, both as it respects 
your duty and your qualifications, before you 
speak to any one of yourself as a candidate for 
missionary service. 

Clifford, flave you read the Suggestions 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 69 

respecting Missionary Experience and Charac- 
ter, made by the Rev. Mr. Bird, to the last 
reinforcement of missionaries and teachers to 
the Sandwich Islands. 

Mrs. Barton. No; but if any of them are 
calculated to regulate Helen's zeal, I wish you 
would read a few extracts. 

Clifford (reads). " We read of the trials 
and the successes of the missionary, and we 
are impatient to share in both. The very evils, 
the pains, the difficulties, seem a part of the 
luxury of his situation. We envy David 
Brainerd his little hut, his bed of straw, and 
his cakes baked in the ashes ; but to have 
relished these things, in fact, would have re- 
quired a faith and patience which, I fear, have 
not fallen to the share of most of us. 

" The missionary cause is so evidently the 
cause of God, we have such honorable and 
holy examples in it, both of former and latter 
days, and such a halo of glory is thrown around 
it, by our dearest friends and the dearest friends 
of the Redeemer, that our zeal becomes im- 
moderate. We long to be in the field. Come 
trial, come pain, come death, we are ready for 
7 



70 MISSION TO THE 

any thing. And we think, perhaps, that we 
shall not only maintain this glow of sympathy 
and zeal for the heathen ; but that, when we 
come to behold them daily, and grow more 
acquainted with the extent of their miseries, 
we shall be still more interested and active for 
their salvation." 

Helen, I have felt just so, many a time. 

Clifford. Now listen to what Mr. B., who 
for years has been connected with the Syrian 
mission, says (reads) ; "Missionary zeal is not 
quickened by exile, and by a long and near 
acquaintance with heathenish abominations. 
Has it stirred you up to activity, to live long 
in an ungodly family or neighborhood? Has it 
strengthened you in the word of God, to visit 
our wharves and rum-shops, and to have to do 
with men so given up to beastly pleasures, or 
so overwhelmed in business, that you could not 
gain a hearing when you spoke of the great sal- 
vation ? Have you ever felt the rousing efiect 
of long-continued scorn and contempt upon 
your religious energy ? As then you have been 
influenced in America, so, be assured, you 
will find yourself influenced by similar circum- 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 71 

Stances at your missionary station. It was long 
ago the remark of one who knew the world, 
^ Men do not change their hearts by changing 
their sky.' There is then, dear brethren, a 
possibility of your being deceived and disap- 
pointed in regard to the degree and the genu- 
ineness of your missionary zeal." 

Helen, I have been too self-confident. Do 
let me hear more. 

Clifford. " It will be no easy matter to 
love the heathen. After exhibiting before 
you, for years, their coarseness and their vice, 
outraging, not only all correct taste, but all 
your moral feelings, you will sometimes ex- 
claim, ' O, these sottish people ! they have not 
one lovely trait in their whole character,' Your 
very soul will loathe them, and your heart will 
break out, like David's, ' Rid me and deliver 
me from the hand of strange children, whose 
mouth speaketh vanity, and their right hand is 
a right hand of falsehood.' You will need in- 
exhaustible patience. You will need a love 
like that of a Savior, which many waters can- 
not quench. You will have to call up to your 
assistance continually the recollection, that an 



72 MISSION TO THE 

immortal soul lies hid beneath that filthy body, 
and that the Son of God stooped down to be 
the companion of just such men as these, and 
showed how he estimated their worth, by pa- 
tiently enduring their scoffs and their scorn, 
and by paying for them his own most precious 
blood. To be spending your best strength for 
people who will not thank you for it ; to re- 
ceive evil for good, and cursing for blessing ; 
to go from the universal respect of good men 
and the embraces of friends, that you may be 
despised, and scowled at, and spit upon, — and 
by such men too, — will be a new sort of trial, 
— one which you will hardly know how to 
meet ; take care, then, lest you be provoked to 
hatred or revenge. Rather seize the opportu- 
nity to exemplify the power and excellency of 
that religion which you bring them, which en- 
ables you to ' love your enemies, bless them that 
curse you, to do good to them that hate you, 
and to pray for them that despitefully use you 
and persecute you.' You must love the hea- 
then, in spite of their hatefulness, and must show 
by your deeds, that you love them. Make them 
feel that you can do them good, and lliat your 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 13 

great errand and business among them is to do 
them good. Let there be a patient continu- 
ance in well-doing. Suffer long, and be kind, 
— and by God's blessing you will gain the con- 
fidence, the attention, and the souls of many." 
Mrs. Barton. These suggestions are cal- 
culated to profit the private Christian, as well 
as the missionary. They show how very 
necessary it is for all Christians to cleave to 
Christ, and to feel that without him they can 
do nothing, and through him also that they can 
do all things. 

Clifford. What would a missionary to the 
heathen do, without an Almighty Savior to go 
to for strength to struorcrle with inward conflicts 
and outward temptations? Do think of the 
missionary, standing alone in a heathen land, — 
no Sabbath, no Bible, no school, and no books. 
He has come to this dark land, to proclaim the 
will of God, and to bring the people to ac- 
knowledge and obey the laws and institutions 
which he has established ; and if he lives near 
to God, and labors, in singleness of heart, and 
? dependence on the aid of the Holy Spirit, he 
^ will have many a gem in his crown of rejoicing, 



74 MISSION TO THE 

rescued through his instrumentality from the 
pollution, and final perdition of idolaters. 

Helen. I think the Scriptures warrant much 
greater encouragement and support to mission- 
aries than Mr. Bird expresses. There is no 
need of looking only on the dark side ; for 
every missionary death-bed I ever heard de- 
scribed, exhibited joy and peace in believing ; 
and nearly all, when dying, have expressed 
gratitude to God for allowing them to live, la- 
bor and die for the salvation of the heathen. 

Clifford, I have read but a few of Mr. 
B.'s remarks ; when you have read or heard 
all he says, you will feel satisfied that the mis- 
sionary who lives near to Christ is happy in 
his work, and has no desire to quit it. Hear 
what he says : " Live near to Christ, then, 
brethren. He is your life. With him by your 
side, you will not fear the discouragements of 
disappointment ; for your expectation will not 
be from yourselves, nor from the heathen, but 
from him. With Christ by your side, you will 
instinctively imitate him as your pattern ; you 
will be meek and lowly in heart, and patient 
under trials. With Christ to strengthen you, 



D 14 Bf^ 



PAWNEE INDIANS. 75 

you will be ready, as Paul was, to preach at 
Damascus, or Jerusalem, or Tarsus, or Athens, 
without fruit, amid scoffers and opposers, and 
yet feel able to * do all things.' Live near 
to Christ, — love Christ, — preach Christ, and 
Christ will take care of you. There is no 
mistake about it. He will be to you more 
than all the friends you have left. He will 
give you a mouth and utterance which all your 
adversaries shall not be able to resist." 

Helen. These suggestions have done me 
good, and whether or not I ever join a mission, 
I will strive after greater measures o( patience, 
humility, and meeJcness, than I now possess. 

Jane. I shall feel impatient to hear how 
Mr. and Mrs. Allis and Mrs. Dunbar succeed 
in their efforts to benefit the Pawnees. How 
long will it be before we shall he likely to hear 
from them ? 

Clifford. I expect, in the course of a few 
months, to hear, that Mr. Dunbar has many 
serious hearers on the Sabbath, and that the la- 
dies have commenced a boarding-school, which 
is the only kind of school that can be established 
among the Indians, with much advantage, till 



76 MISSION TO THE PAWNEE INDIANS. 

they have adopted a more settled mode of life ; 
and we must see to it, that money is not want- 
ing to increase the means of Indian improve- 
ment. 

" Soon may the last glad song arise, 
Through all the millions of the skies, — 
That song of triumph which records 
That all the earth is now the Lord's ! 

Let thrones, and powers, and kingdoms be 
Obedient, mighty God, to thee ! 
And over land, and stream, and main, 
Now wave the sceptre of thy reign ! 

O let that glorious anthem swell ; 
Let heart to heart the triumph tell, — 
That not or-* rebel heart remains. 
But ovpi all ti e Savior reigns!" 



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